


(the hopes are) exponentially high

by icantbe



Category: One Direction (Band)
Genre: Alternate Universe - High School, America instead of England, F/M, Happy too, M/M, Unhealthy Relationships, enjoy!!, i don't know anything about England schools so let's set this in America!, it gets better!!, just a past one!, relationships aren't all unhealthy, sad sometimes, the relationships change with some people!!
Language: English
Status: In-Progress
Published: 2014-03-28
Updated: 2014-04-01
Packaged: 2018-01-17 07:03:49
Rating: Not Rated
Warnings: Creator Chose Not To Use Archive Warnings
Chapters: 5
Words: 9,511
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/1378261
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/icantbe/pseuds/icantbe
Summary: <blockquote class="userstuff">
              <p>Louis is stuck in his senior year, a couple months short of turning eighteen, and is living with his sisters and mum and stepdad (along with his very, very entitled kitten that'll come along). He became dubbed as a Little Miss Priss from his pal, somewhere in the times of kindergarten to first grade and that's just how it stayed. (It's not so true anymore, but the tradition is still there.)</p><p>Harry is from a family with money to spare, a quarterback prodigy in a small southern Texas town. He drives an Impala from '67 that he searched far and wide to purchase, and has a nice social life, more content to spend time with his friends in and out of college rather than the boys from his grade.</p><p>After Greg, Louis hasn't so much as given a thought to letting a cute boy have his cell number. His hopes were so high, and they haven't done anything but make his expectations soar to an exponential amount.</p>
            </blockquote>





	1. One

**Author's Note:**

> I don't know anything really about school or college in England and Ireland so I'm gonna go with America!!
> 
> This is just something that popped into in my mind in Geometry class and I love Louis with a fluffy kitten and Harry with an Impala so this tiny thing came to life somewhere in that hour and a half.

_"Come on Lou," Greg whined into Louis' ear, his lips pressed soft against the skin below it, "You're so pretty, love you so much, just lemme take care of you.."_

 

Louis gets shaken awake by his mom at five until eight a.m., not quite comprehending the words coming out of her mouth because the voice he can still hear is leftover from the dream. When he blinks twice in a row, though, Greg's voice is replaced with the surprisingly loud words coming from her mouth. He groans and presses his face into the pillowcase, "M'up, mother," he mutters, burrowing himself further into the bedsheets and the down comforter. Jay sighs and rests her hand on Louis' forehead for a few moments.

"You know as well as I do, boo, that you're going to be fast asleep right after I walk out of this room," she says as a response and sits down on the edge of his bed, taking a second to look around his room. Even if Louis' personality had changed in the past year, the pictures and posters from his middle school years still remained in the same places they had always been. She smiles when she sees the framed collage of photographs of him and Zayn throughout a few years, and looks back to Louis- who's eyes have fluttered shut and is still tightly wrapped in the blankets. "I suppose I can call you in sick today," she whispers as she presses a soft kiss to his hair. 

Louis feels his lips turn up in a tired smile, half of his face hidden in the pillow, "Really?"

Jay nods after another second of thought, "Only if you get that essay for your history class done, alright?" When Louis nods, she sets a phone on his bedside table, "Answer only if it's me or your sisters' school or Dan, and  make sure to ring me if you want some take out for lunch." He nods once more and she leaves the room, closing the door to where there is only a small crack of light from the hallway making it's way in to his mostly dark bedroom. He hears his cell make a pinging noise and he yawns, rolling over onto his back and rubbing at his eyes. He knows it's probably just Zayn sending him a check up text as a result of not already being in homeroom like he usually is in the mornings.

**Zayn: where r u? mrs grant has a sub and i thnk nialls drooling already**

With a sleepy giggle, Louis pictures Niall and Zayn in their back row of the classroom, and he figures the substitute is probably a leggy brunette if Zayn's already texting Louis about it. He responds with a picture, closing his eyes for it and resting his cheek onto his hand, attempting for a mock sleeping position and attaches it to his response.

**Louis: ha still in bed the mother ship let me stay home ''''sick'''' have a good day stuck at school xoxo**

He's just getting up out of bed when Jay calls out a loud goodbye from downstairs, and Louis repeats it back, stretching his arms out over his head and yawning. He makes sure to put on a pair of the few fuzzy socks he owns before checking his phone again and dropping it onto the bed when he sees Zayn's read it and hasn't replied. He doesn't put on the sweats he had originally planned on wearing around the house and simply pulls out one of the old, ratty sweaters from his closet. It's one of the ones that reach just past his boxers and hang off his arms, the sleeves way too long, letting him bunch them up around his hands when his fingers get chilly.

It's after Louis turns on the small television on the kitchen counter and is putting a piece of honey wheat toast (from the middle of the loaf. He hates the pieces close to the edge.) in the toaster when his school's name is spoken on the news. He pushes the lever on the toaster down after adjusting the heat to what's been written on the sticky note stuck on the refrigerator. A year of making his own toast and no one in his family trusts him to make it without leaving as explicit instructions as they can for just a piece of simple toast. He sits on the stool beside the television and rests his chin against his palm, attention turned to the screen. 

It's not the first time Ridgeway High's football team has been featured on the local news, and it's definitely not the first time Harry Styles' school picture has been shown. 

 

_"Hey, babe, do you know that Styles kid?" Greg mumbles against Louis' hair when they're pressed up together in a warm blanket after watching a marathon of Pretty Little Liars episodes that weren't Louis' favorites._

_Louis shakes his head, burying his face further into the crook of Greg's neck and closing his eyes, "Mm.. I've never spoken to him. He's in my Drama class, why?"_

_"'Cause his picture's on the news, did you know he saved a kitten from some house fire?" Louis shakes his head in response to Greg's other question, humming softly and lacing his fingers through his boyfriend's. Greg doesn't say anything else, just changes the channel to a boring reality show that Louis has only heard of once before, and that was the first time Harry Styles was ever on the television that Louis watched._

 

After Greg, Louis hasn't turned on the television much. Maybe it's the commercials they would poke fun at together, the ones obviously made for little children and babies, but put on ABC Family and Nick late at night. He watches the news much less than he watches regular TV shows. He supposes the only show he watches regularly is Supernatural, and even then, he usually has to catch up late at night on some website like Megashare or Putlocker.

The toast pops up out of the toaster just as Harry's accomplishments in the last football game are being brought to attention, and all Louis catches is he scored most of the goals for the team and tackled people. He's never understood football much- just watched it occasionally with his sisters and stepdad. He would rather watch a sport live. Not that he's ever gone to one of the games, despite Zayn and Niall's attempts to get him to one. He thinks Zayn just goes since Liam plays, and he's pretty sure he's right since he gets about ten texts per quarter about Liam's biceps and how they "bulge". It's a bit tiring, really.

By the time he's gotten the peanut butter spread evenly on the toast, Harry's picture has faded away and they're talking about the missing airplane. He's more interested in going upstairs and crawling back into bed than learning about what's going on in the world, so he turns the television off and shuts off the lights in the kitchen, double checking the lock on both the back and front door just in case. He nibbles on the crusts of the toast as he walks upstairs, setting the plate down on the bedside table and laying back down.

Louis debates getting back up to get a water bottle and his laptop, but just settles with his phone and plate of toast. He can only finish three quarters of it before his tummy is protesting, the food heavy and a little bit too much. He does end up going back downstairs to get some water, filling his favorite sip-cup up with two pieces of ice and half with water. He probably could not tell you why he still drinks his water and juice from a childhood toddler cup, but he likes it, and his mom never complains, just simply buys a few more when they get worn out. After sinking back down in bed, he shoots both Zayn and Niall a quick text in the group chat, sipping from the cup curled in his other hand.

**Louis: come over after school, wanna talk and watch grease!**

He adds a thumbs up emoji and presses send, turning the volume on the ringer on since he's still sleepy and won't hear just the vibrate if his mom calls. He finishes his water and hiccups once, pulling the sheets, comforter and blankets up, falling asleep pretty quickly after that, warm and happy and sated.

 


	2. Two

Louis gets woken in what seems like only ten minutes after he had fallen asleep (It's also a rude awakening, if you ask him). He barely has time to wipe the sleep from the inside corners of his eyes before the covers are pulled back and he can hear Niall's laugh and Zayn's soft chuckle. "Get up, c'mon," Niall chirps, and when Louis doesn't move he groans, "You were the one who texted us!"

"Gimme a second, go ahead and go to start the movie. You know where they are," Louis mumbles back, slowly sitting up and stretching his legs out in front of him and his arms over his head. He watches Niall and Zayn leave the room and he stands up after their footsteps are moving down the hallway. He takes his time with gathering the empty sipcup and the plate from his earlier piece of toast before also walking out of his bedroom and down the staircase. He makes a quick stop in the kitchen to rinse the plate off and grab three bottled Coca-Cola's from the refrigerator, padding into the living room afterwards. Zayn already has a couple of blankets down on the larger of the two couches while Niall fidgets with the remote, grinning when he spots Louis and pressing the 'play' button quickly. "How was school?" Louis asks as he sets the sodas down and pops the top off of his own, taking a small sip.

He sees more than hears Zayn's groan when Niall's grin only becomes toothier and he leans forward. "Mrs. Grant had a sub," he says at a volume that could probably be considered a whisper if it really mattered all that much. Louis simply raises an eyebrow and takes another sip from the bottle in his hand, knowing well enough Niall would go on whether anyone was listening or not. And he's right when Niall starts to speak again, "She was hot. Like, proper hot. Brown hair and everything, Lou!" He smiles out of politeness- even though the opening of Grease is beginning and he'd rather be paying attention to that. With a quick glance to Zayn, Louis tunes Niall out and spares a glance at the television, setting his soda down so he can curl into the blanket in a more comfortable position. 

"That's grand, Ni," Louis murmurs after he's relatively sure Niall's done spouting about the woman- Gina? Jean? Jade?- and Niall nods, the three of them silent for a few moments. When he opens his mouth to say something else, Louis looks over at him and shakes his head, "After the movie, just hold on to that thought?" He's content when the silence is back and he leans his cheek against the palm of his hand, already zoning in to the film playing.

 

The boys don't stay long after Grease ends. Zayn wants to attend the football game, rambling about how his mom says it's good for him to be involved with the school's sports and showing support for the team, but Louis and Niall make eye contact for a second and they know this new obsession over football is about Liam. Sometimes Zayn will ask how the season has been and how many games has the team won, again? Louis makes a mental note to ask him how the game ended up so that he has an excuse to bring Liam up, although he probably won't remember.

Niall gives Louis a hug and tells him to be good to himself before leaving shortly after Zayn, saying he's hungry and his dad cooked steak and baked potatoes tonight. He also left with a promise to call Louis before he goes to bed and that they'll talk about Louis' day rather than his own. 

Louis cleans up the bottles and folds the blankets, hanging them over the back of the couch like they were before. His sisters should be home in less than a half hour, since Dan got off of work early and was set up to bring them home from school rather than Jay doing it like she usually does. So that leaves Louis time to think. The thing is, Louis has been thinking a lot ever since a couple weeks after what he's dubbed The Greg Incident. (Also known as TGI when him, Zayn, and Niall are around his parents.) He thinks about where he wants to go to college out of the ones he's gotten the acceptance letters to, what kinds of food he'll bring with him, and what kind of people he might want as a dorm mate. He wonders about what's going to happen to Zayn when he goes to the University of Houston for his art and if Niall will even go to a college. He hopes they'll all three stay in touch.

Sometimes, Louis lets himself think of Greg. Before Greg, he felt like he could fill up a room with his presence. He had no problem asking questions to the popular boy in the grade above him, or even the girl in the biggest house on his street. During Greg, his presence would shrink some. He would make himself even smaller curled up against Greg's side- his arm draped over his shoulder so he can be pulled halfway on to his lap when needed be. His friends noticed that he would retract into himself at moments, even when he wasn't with Greg. His family noticed, too. After Greg, he stayed soft and pliant and submissive. Even when he told his mom what had happened, he never really became himself again. Maybe, he likes to wonder, that was a good thing. He's a lot closer to his mom and sisters now that he doesn't go out with friends like he used to. 

On a rarer occasion, he reminds himself of the words Greg used to mumble against his skin when they were out on a double date, or having dinner with Louis' whole family. The whispered words hurt Louis more than he would like to admit. He's never told anyone but his mom and Zayn what those murmurs were, or why he disappeared for a whole three months. Or why there's a chart and a list of emergency numbers hung up on the freezer door. Louis likes to tell himself it's gotten better, and it has. He has a whole cabinet of food that he likes to eat, which is more than the apples and bananas he would nibble on before, or the Sassy Water he would drink. Dan and Lottie and Felicite pretend not to notice the chart and the fact that sometimes the list of phone numbers is nearer to the kitchen phone than the fridge. They're good people. Good, strong people. The twins never notice the difference. He doesn't mind. He even misses being that young and naive a few times.

Back in the kitchen, Louis pulls himself out an orange and a knife, along with a cutting board. He doesn't want to bother Jay with a takeout order and add another responsibility to her busy day, so he figures orange slices should be enough until Dan can go and get all of the family a pizza or something along those lines. He's in the middle of cutting the two halves he's sliced already in half again when the front door opens and Phoebe and Daisy barge in, dropping their backpacks by the door. The sudden noise makes Louis' concentration short out for a moment and the knife slips, cutting into his thumb and leaving a small gash on the inside of it. He looks at it for a moment before putting the knife down beside the orange and turning around to look over Lottie's head at Dan, just coming through the door and closing it. "I cut my finger by accident," he says once Dan glances back and winces, walking forward to take Louis' wrist in his hand.

"Let's just run some water over it and, Lottie, go get your brother a band-aid, would you?" He asks, a bit louder in order to get the question heard across the room. Lottie does as he says and makes her way upstairs as Dan turns on the tap water, making sure it's cold but not too cold before holding Louis' thumb underneath it. Louis watches as the blood washes away. 

Lottie comes back down not a full minute later with a sparkly silver band-aid between her index and middle fingers, handing it over to Dan and taking over the job of slicing the orange up. She finishes that just as Louis pulls his hand out from the water stream and lets Dan put the bandage on, tighter than he would have liked, but he supposes it's best if the bleeding stops. He's thankful that his sister has the compassion to even put the orange pieces on a paper plate for him after cutting the skin off of the slices and set it down next to the kitchen stool, and he sits down and picks one up with his uninjured hand. "Thank you, Lots," Louis smiles as he takes a bite of the orange bit he had picked up. Lottie beams back at him and the twins and Felicite are already at the kitchen table with their schoolbooks open up. One of the long-standing rules at the Tomlinson home is that all homework must be done before dinner, with the exception of projects and studying for tests. 

Louis sits quietly with Lottie at the bar stools, nibbling at his orange and occasionally glancing at the small television on the counter that has a child's cartoon on it. The dog on the screen is made up of the word Dog, and he thinks to himself, _Some of these shows are a bit demented_. He enjoys these afternoons, nevertheless. They're relaxing and they always have a way of soothing him, even if he's had a bad day. So, he stays sitting even after the orange is gone and the pain in his thumb is more of a dull throb than anything sharp and urgent, resting his head in his arms and watching the cartoon on TV with the chatter from Daisy to Dan about how her and Phoebe's day was in the background.


	3. Chapter 3

"Lou, please!" Lottie whines, crossing her arms where she's sat opposite Louis at the table. Jay had called less than a half hour ago and reported that she would be coming home late, and Dan ordered them a pizza for dinner, leading them to where they all are now.

"Lottie, I don't want to take you to a dumb football game!" Louis replies, a little huffier than he intends it to be, "I hate football!"

"Yeah, but Zayn's going to be there! And you could maybe make some new friends, too!" 

"Zayn's going to be staring at poor Liam's butt the entire time, how am I supposed to enjoy being with him when he does that all the game?" Louis looks at Lottie and she sighs, turning herself in her chair to look at Felicite and Dan. 

"Dan, will you tell Louis it would be nice to take me and Fiz to the football game at his school? He never goes and I think it would be good for all three of us! Fiz is gonna be going there next year, and I haven't been to one game in almost a year and a half!" Louis watches as Lottie adds one of her puppy-pouty faces and he sighs, knowing he''s going to be taking them to the game whether he throws a fit or not.

"It would be a good thing, Louis," Dan supplies, reaching for the last slice of the cheese pizza that had been devoured relatively slower than it usually would have been.

Louis groans and pushes away his plate, "Fine." He looks at Felicite and glares (halfheartedly) at Lottie, letting out a breath, "Be ready in twenty minutes, at the most. If I'm going to have to be there, I'll at least want to have a comfortable seat." With that, he gets up and puts his plate beside the sink along with his empty glass before padding from the kitchen and up the stairs, closing his bedroom door once he's stepped in the doorway.

He picks up his phone from where it was still on his bed, taking a few seconds to send a text to Zayn.

**Louis: gonna be at the game tonight.. see u there?**

Phone dropped back onto the bed, Louis walks over to his closet and opens the doors, sighing almost silently. It only takes him a minute or so to find the pair of white jeans he has folded on one of the drawers on the back wall, and he pulls them down, slinging them over his arm. He walks back out of his closet and towards the dresser beside the bed, opening the top drawer and taking out a blue t-shirt, deciding he would just go with another large sweater, so it really wouldn't matter what shirt he had on. He's gotten dressed and is pulling on the sweater when his phone pings, and he sits down on the edge of the bed, picking it up. 

**Zayn: you comin to a game!!! gonna see you there!!**

Letting out a soft sigh, Louis puts his phone in his back pocket and slips on his worn in, black Vans before trotting back down the stairs- a little more than surprised to see that Lottie and Felicite are already waiting for him. "Ready, you two?" He asks, sparing a glance at each of them.

Lottie nods, "Mhm! Dan's getting Phoebs ready for her bath, but he said to text him if you leave early and need him to pick Fiz and I up." Louis rolls his eyes at what she says, but inside, he's grateful, since he'll probably end up leaving before halftime, anyways.

"Come on, then. You look nicer than usually, who're you trying to impress?" Louis asks, lifting an eyebrow to Lottie as he unlocks his car and gets into the driver's side, starting the engine up.

He knows he's asked the right question behind her motive to wear the miniskirt Jay had gotten her a week or so back when she blushes and Felicite stifles a soft giggle into the back of her hand, but he doesn't ask again when she leaves him without an answer.

 

It only takes them ten minutes to get there, and when they all get out of the car and start walking to the field, Louis figures that they should have come even earlier than they did- since the seats on their side of the bleachers are already almost all taken. He lets out a relieved sigh, though, when he sees Zayn sitting on an empty row up towards the top, and he begins to walk over there, Lottie and Felicite following close behind. 

"Hey!" Zayn chirps when Louis sits beside him, and Louis responds with a smile and a quick once over of the field.

"Lou, I'm gonna take Felicite to meet and sit with some of my friends?" Lottie says, or asks, since she's mostly phrasing it as a question, even though she already knows the answer. Louis nods and props his hands up on his lap, looking at Zayn and huffing.

"How terrible is this going to be?" He asks, and Zayn lets out a soft chuckle, patting Louis' shoulder.

"It's really not that bad, Lou. Just a bit loud at times," Is the response and Louis groans, tipping his head back. He and Zayn chat idly for around thirty to forty minutes, at least, and when some sort of fanfare from the band down on the sidelines starts up, Zayn stops talking, and Louis follows his lead and stays quiet as well. He doesn't get up and yell when the team runs in, not really feeling the whole "School Spirit" vibe. It doesn't take long after that until the cheerleaders start making noise as well and what he believes is the kick off gets, well, kicked. 

 

He's not paid much attention to the game when Zayn pops up from where he's sitting and drags Louis up along with him, yelling something Louis can't quite understand. He does understand that it's a touchdown when the score on the scoreboard changes, and he sits back down seconds before anybody else in the bleachers, huffing out a breath.  _Only five minutes until halftime_ , he thinks to himself. He runs a trembling hand through his hair and tries to watch where the ball is being passed around, and when a tall, what looks like lanky, boy throws himself onto another and takes him to the ground, Louis gasps. He didn't ever take the time to consider that football could actually, well, hurt. 

"That was Harry," Zayn breathes out from beside Louis, and he stands up, because Greg used to play while he was still in Louis' life, and he would come home with bruises and scrapes, and murmur that it was all alright when Louis would worry over each one. 

Louis gets up and throws a quick, "I have to pee!" over his shoulder at Zayn, weaving his way through the other people on the same row as them before walking down the bleacher steps. He almost makes it through them without causing a disruption, but on the last step he stumbles and trips into a short, what he assumes to be a freshman, boy and the drink he's holding goes all over him. Louis holds his breath because the halftime buzzer buzzes just as this happens and the screech from the boy (who's now covered in Dr. Pepper) manages to attract the whole bleacher's attention along with the whole field. 

"You- you fucktard!" The drenched boy exclaims, voice infuriated, in which, Louis would be too if he'd just been spilled a drink on. He can't bring himself to give much of a shit on what the freshman calls him, because the small stadium has gone quiet except for a few giggles,  and the football team has all looked over at them. 

Louis sucks in a breath and bends down to grab a napkin from one of the people in the front row, stuffing it in the boy's hands. "I'm, um, really, really sorry, I just didn't see you," he replies quickly before darting down the last step and out from the bleachers towards the parking lot. Once he's in the safety of his car, he rubs at his face and texts Dan, making a few typos along the way, letting him know he has to pick the girls up. After making sure it's sent, he pulls out of the parking lot and turns up the radio, trying to drown out the fact that at his /very/ first football game he's attended, he managed to get everyone's attention on him and piss off a freshman who should be scared of him, the senior, and have the whole, actual, football team see him. And the realization that today was only a Thursday, and he still has to go to school tomorrow.

The Fray, he believes, helps a lot.

 

* * *

 

 

The game's been over for about fifteen minutes and everyone's just leaving for the after party. Liam's picking up the last few water bottles left over on the bench they had all sat on during halftime, and Harry has his arms crossed, waiting for him. "Liam, let's just go, shit. It's gonna start without us," he mutters, "And I still have to change!"

"I'm picking up a mess we left, Harry, just cool off," Liam responds, sighing softly as he grabs the last bottle and puts it in the container. "Unlike all of you heathens, I prefer to keep the field clean."

Harry rolls his eyes. "I like the field clean, I just hate doing it myself." Liam is about to pick up his bag and sling it over his shoulder when he speaks again, "Does you picking up after every game now have anything to do with the boy in the stands who stays late after everyone's left?"

"God, H, no, fuck. Maybe? He's cute, leave me alone," Liam mutters, handing Harry's bag to him as well. 

"Dude, you can like whoever you want. He is pretty cute, though. I'll give you that." Liam smiles and Harry chuckles softly, "Go talk to him. I'll wait. Probably shouldn't go to the party anyways. I have a test tomorrow morning." 

He sits back on the bench and waits, watching as Liam heads over to where Zayn's just standing up and making his own way down the bleachers. "Hey!" Liam calls up to him, and Zayn stops, looking down to where Liam is.

"Hi," he responds, stuffing his hands into the pockets of his jacket. "Liam. Payne, yeah?"

Liam nods and grins, Zayn continuing down the bleachers until he's on the grass and a few feet away from him. "Yeah, yeah. What's, um, your name? If it's not a bad thing I don't know it."

Zayn chuckles quietly and shakes his head, "Nah. Not a bad thing. It's Zayn. I kind of hide out with the other art fools and such, not really much for social attention. If that makes sense." 

He crinkles his nose when Liam laughs quietly, nodding again, "Yeah. Saw you sitting with that other boy. He made quite a, what was it, an exit?"

Zayn nods as well, shrugging his shoulders. "Louis has always been one for.. What you could call, dramatic entrances and exits, even if he doesn't mean to." He looks over to where Harry's picking at his thumbnail on the benches and glances back to Liam, "Hey, it's pretty late, and I'm sure you two want to get to that party, so..."

"Could I have your number?" Liam blurts, "If that's not creepy. So we can, um, maybe sit together at lunch sometime." Zayn smiles and they trade phones, putting each other's number in and handing them back. 

Zayn's just walking away when he pauses, turning around to face Liam again. "It's not. Creepy, that is. Text me sometime." He turns back and makes his own way back to the parking lot, and Liam pads back over to Harry, soft blush still pink on his cheeks. Harry grins but doesn't say anything, and him and Liam walk out to their respective cars, saying something about Zayn joining them for lunch tomorrow, before they get in and leave for their homes. 

Harry knows it's going to be talked about that they weren't at the party tonight, but as he loads the new The Fray CD into his CD slot, the music filling up the silence of the car, he doesn't really mind. And if he wonders about if the boy who knocked the drink all over the freshman listens to The Fray too, well, that's something for only Harry to know.


	4. Four

By the time Louis has pulled into the senior parking lot and shut off his car, he's had a hectic morning. First, he had forgotten to throw his white jeans in the washing machine so they could be washed and dried by the next morning, so he was stuck with his black pair- which he thought made his thighs look a little thicker than they were. Next, there were no more oranges or apples for his breakfast or lunch, so Jay had given him ten dollars to stop by the bakery on the way to school, and an extra five for the school lunch. The bakery was closed and his tummy was growling lowly, as of now. Lottie had thrown a fit about going to school with Louis, so he had to drive alone, but at least he got to listen to his own music instead of all that pop shit that was on the radio. So, he was grateful for that. 

He had almost forgotten about the incident the night before up until he got out of the car and walked through the front doors, Zayn waiting for him. "Hey, guess who talked to me last night after the game?" He asks, and Louis groans, running a hand through his hair before pushing them into his pockets.

"Who?" Louis responds, just so Zayn will be appeased and not talk about it all day long. 

"Liam. Payne." Zayn answers and Louis smiles, just because Zayn's had a crush on this boy for as long as he can remember, and he nods.

They're both walking to their first classes when Louis feels as if someone's eyes are on him, and when he turns around in the hall, he sees a circle of jocks standing around Harry Styles' locker, and of course, Harry's the one who's been gazing at him. Louis blushes and hurries into the room, letting out a sigh when the tardy bell rings. "Hey, Z," he murmurs, turning slightly in his desk so he can face Zayn in the desk behind him, "Why was that Styles boy looking at me before the bell?"

Zayn chuckles and leans back in his seat, "I may have mentioned your name and how you were clumsy last night to Liam, and Harry may have only been a few feet away."

"Zayn!" Louis whines, pushing his bottom lip out in a small pout and crossing his arms over his chest, "You know I'm not dating again!"

"Lou, he would be good for you!"

"No, he wouldn't! You don't even know if he likes boys!"

"He dated that college dude for a month last year!"

Louis groans, turning back around in his seat. "You know I don't date." When Zayn rolls his eyes, he huffs out a breath because he thought out of all people, /Zayn/ wouldn't be the one trying to set him up with somebody. He's never even spoken to Harry before. He ignores Niall's greeting when he walks in late and he's already tuned them both out when Zayn responds.

 

_It's hot outside, and it hadn't rained since a week ago, and he is sprawled out underneath Greg on a beach towel beside his pool. Louis giggles and doesn't move from where Greg has his wrists gently pinned down, kissing him back when he leans down to press his lips to his. They kiss for a little while before Louis grins and shifts just enough to where he can speak without touching Greg's lips, "You taste like a strawberry popsicle," he says quietly, and Greg mirrors his smile._

_"You do too. Silly," he responds and sits up, resting beside Louis and leaning back onto his hands. "Swim?"  
_

_When Louis nods, Greg is up within a few seconds, hopping into the cool water, and Louis follows, squealing when Greg's arms wrap around him before he goes completely underwater. "Cool in here."_

_"Pretty, too. It's always a nice blue color." Louis smiles at his response and lets Greg lift him up onto the edge of the pool, also lets him press kisses down from his lips to his collarbone before squirming away._

_"Not now, babe," he mumbles and he thinks he can see Greg's lips turn down into a scowl, but it's gone before he can question it. But he backs away anyways and Louis jumps back in to the water, this time completely submerged before Greg pulls him back up._

 

Now that Louis looks back at it, he can see where the Greg he was in love with ended and the angry Greg began. It was in the frowns and puffs of breath when he would push him away after Greg's hand would wander down to his butt, or when the hickeys would move from his neck to his chest. He thinks himself lucky Greg never hit him, and he wonders, that if Greg hadn't dumped him, if sex would have become a way of abuse, if Greg would have taken advantage of him to that extent.

 

_Louis is curled up in the front seat of Greg's Acura, waiting for him to come back with a muffin and coffee for both of them from the bakery. When he comes back, Louis notices there' s no cute, brown bag in his hands, and there's only one cup. Greg hands it to Louis and he takes a small sip, almost immediately spitting it out afterwards. "It's black," he says quietly, and doesn't notice the way Greg's mouth screws up into a semblance of a scowl._

_"Can't you drink black coffee for once, Louis? Fuck. You're always so high maintenance," Greg mutters, turning the car engine on and pulling out of the parking lot before Louis has a chance to ask about his muffin._

_"Did they not have any  muffins?" He asks after a few minutes of silence, and Greg's still driving, even though his fingers tighten on the steering wheel._

_"No. They had them. You don't need one, Lou." Louis sighs at the reply and sinks back into the seat. He never complains, doesn't want to, knows Greg's just looking out for him and wants him to stay healthy. "You're even close to our goal, aren't you? Only, like, ten more pounds?" Louis nods. He knows he's close. That's why he didn't have a waffle that morning, or an apple at lunch._

_Louis glances around when Greg stops the car, and frowns when there's nothing around them but a freeway. "Why are we here?" He questions when Greg unbuckles and leans over. When he gets a kiss in response, he kisses him back, although not very eagerly, and he supposes Greg can tell, because he pulls away immediately and clenches his fingers around Louis' wrist._

_"God dammit, I get you your stupid coffee and put up with your whines about being hungry, and look after you, make sure you lose that little bit of chub, and you can't even kiss me back? What the fuck is your problem today?" Greg's seething- Louis can tell, so he just shakes his head and makes himself smaller, sniffling._

_"I'm sorry, babe.. I know you're just trying to help me. And I'm sorry." He doesn't get a reply to his apology, and he sighs._

 

* * *

 

 

Louis doesn't understand when he doesn't see Zayn at the outside benches they usually sit at. He doesn't see Niall either. "Odd," he mutters to himself but sits down anyways, picking the fifteen dollars out from his pocket. He gets up a few seconds later and walks into the cafeteria, towards the drink machine, and is punching in the number and letter for a water bottle when his name is called.

"Lou!" Niall grins at him from where he's seated between Zayn and a kid in Louis' science class, and when Louis takes a closer look- Zayn's next to Liam, and Harry's right beside Liam as well. "Come sit!" He waits for his water bottle to come out of the bottom and picks it up.

"No thanks!" Louis calls back, shaking his head for an extra effect before walking back outside, ignoring the pleading, puppy-eyes look he gets from Niall. He sits back onto the bench underneath the old oak tree, sighing quietly as he opens the bottle of water. He takes a sip and sets it down beside him. There's no one else on the benches, today, and he sniffles, knowing he was welcome to sit with Niall, Zayn, Liam and Harry, but not having really wanted to. He knows well enough why he didn't accept, and he keeps his phone in his backpack when it pings, knowing it's most likely from one of his two friends.  He sits and drinks his water alone, skilled enough at not letting the tears escape from his eyes when the urge to cry is bad, and he makes it through lunch without anyone coming to check on him.

 

Zayn's brow is furrowed when Niall turns back after calling Louis over and being rejected. "Is something wrong with him today?" Niall asks, tilting his head to the side as he looks back at Zayn.

"He knocked a drink over on some kid last night, and he's been pissed at me since I brought up what I told you about before," Zayn mumbles as a response, and Niall nods.

Liam perks up when Zayn speaks and he smiles, "What'd you tell him about before?"

Zayn shakes his head. "Lou had a bad experience with something a little while back, and I brought it up without meaning to, I think." Liam seems sated enough with that as an answer, and Harry's quieter the rest of lunch with a few interjections, occasionally peering up over Liam's shoulder to try and look out the cafeteria window- but he can never spot Louis.

He's a bit puzzled, to say the least. He's seen the boy around, has spent a few times with his eyes locked to his thigh and butt, because good things should be admired, right? But Harry'd never seen him look necessarily sad, or like he'd looked at Niall when he'd spotted them at the table. Whenever Harry had seen Louis around in the halls, he'd always been chatting with Zayn or one of the younger teachers quite animatedly, up until the period of time where he hadn't seen him at all. He hadn't seen Zayn much either in that time frame, either, to think about it. He doesn't linger on those thoughts much, because the lunch bell's ringing, and he still has a few more classes until he can get out of school and go home to nap. 

 

* * *

 

 

Louis makes it home without speaking to Niall or Zayn, which is actually easier than he expected, since he doesn't have any after lunch classes with them. He checks his phone once he's changed into sweats and a comfier t-shirt and is laying on the couch, seeing a few texts on the screen. He opens each one.

**Zayn: bro u okay?**

**Zayn: i forgot to tell u li invited me and n and u to sit with them**

**Niall: r u alright? didn't see u much today.**

He sees one of Zayn's most recently sent ones right as he's replying, and his nose crinkles up, and what he sees makes him delete the response he was about to send and type out a new one.

**Zayn: hey li asked for ur number, h wants it? says its somethin about ap brit lit!**

**Louis: fuck u.**

He doesn't feel the least bit guilty when he sends it, because Harry doesn't even have AP Brit Lit with him, and if Zayn was any kind of intelligent, he would have asked what assignment it was about. Louis figures he'll apologize to both Zayn and Niall tomorrow, anyways. Say he was having a shitty day to begin with, because he loves them, no matter what kind of shitty things they might do. He would have paid to see Harry come up with an explanation for that, then. He's about to begin on his homework when his phone pings again, and when he expects it to be from Zayn, it's from an unknown number.

**?: hey what pages were we supposed to read in beowulf?**

Louis knows it's from Harry, and he doesn't respond.

 


	5. Five

Louis spends his Saturday making cupcakes. He turns his phone off when he wakes up and doesn't turn it back on, even leaving it upstairs so he doesn't feel tempted. 

 

He wakes up rather early that next morning, especially for a Sunday, and he's greeted by the sweet smell of fresh-cooked bread and bacon. Jay always makes two loaves of this sweet, honey-tasting bread that usually only last the family through half the next week, but it's been a tradition since Louis was in elementary school, and it's always been one of his favorite scents to be able to smell. He brushes his teeth and splashes some warm water on his face before heading down to the kitchen,  a little surprised just to see Dan and Jay in there. Usually, Phoebe or Daisy have attached themselves to Jay's legs by this time and are talking a mile-a-minute. "Where are the girls?" He asks as he sits down on the counter stool, resting his arms on the counter itself.

"Lottie's asleep and the twins are out playing," Jay replies, putting another slice of bacon onto the plate that's already holding some. 

"Where's Fiz?" Louis questions, scrunching his nose up because bacon isn't one of his favorite things for breakfast. Too greasy, too many calories, in his mind.

"Probably on the computer or something. Why don't you go and get dressed, Lou?" Jay says after a moment of silence, glancing over to Dan.

Louis frowns but slowly gets up, "Okay.." He does as she says, closing himself up in his bedroom and putting on a lazy-day outfit, just sweatpants and a sweater, still wondering what's been going on in that they haven't gotten Lottie up out of bed yet. When he finds himself back downstairs, Jay has her keys in her hands and is tucking her wallet into her purse. She looks up at Louis and grins, opening the front door and ushering him out of it. They don't say anything until Louis is buckled in the front seat and Jay's turned on the car, also turning the radio off. 

"We're going to get you a pet," she announces as she pulls out of the driveway, and Louis' brow furrows slightly.

"A pet?"

"Any pet! Your birthday's in not even four months, and you haven't let us celebrate it since you turned fifteen, Lou. And anyways, you and I haven't spent any quality time together in a while!" 

"Mom, your job keeps you out of the house until seven at night. And I can't get around the twins to even speak to you," Louis points out as they're driving on their street, and Jay sighs.

"I know, I know. But that's another reason I wanted to get you alone and out of the house. I'm taking off of work for a little while," she says softly, looking at Louis for a mere second before glancing back to the road in front of them.

"What? Why?" Louis turns in his seat and looks at her, frowning, "Are you dying? Oh god, you're dying, aren't you? You're giving me a pet so I don't get depressed when you die."

Jay laughs and shakes her head, tapping her fingers on the steering wheel. "No. I'm the opposite of dying, actually. I'm pregnant." And  _oh_ _._ Louis didn't see that coming.

"Oh," is actually what he replies, which extracts another small laugh from Jay.

"Almost three months along, wanted to wait to tell you all, but I figured I'd go ahead and tell you first, since you're the oldest." When she says that, Louis remembers all the times when she would excuse herself from the breakfast table and go to the restroom, and the few times Dan would pop up and go check on her when she took too long. How did he not bother to notice, or ask if she was okay?

He says "Oh," again. He also winces when Jay looks at him funny, and the car exits from the freeway onto the streets where the shops are, "I'm just. I'm sorry I didn't notice before. But I'm happy. Maybe it'll actually be a boy this time. Could use a brother to help balance out all of us." 

 

Jay brings Louis to an adoption center tucked in between a coffee shop and a Victoria's Secret. Louis immediately likes it, it's cozy and the lights aren't very bright, dimmed in a way he can still see everything, and the pets aren't all locked up in separate cages like they are in some places. He bends down to pet a few puppies' heads, but when Jay asks him if that's what he wants to buy, he shakes his head and moves on. There's  a few pens full of bumbling kittens, and he settles himself down on his knees in front of the farthest one. One of the tabby gray ones is climbing up the side of the fencing, and Louis smiles and picks it up, only to pat it's tummy softly and set it down with the other kittens that resemble it. Jay's chatting with the woman behind the cash register while Louis is looking at all the cats, and his gaze catches on a kitten that at a quick glance, could be considered just a ball of white fluff, but when he looks a little closer, there's a small pair of blue, very, very blue, eyes looking back at him. He smiles and picks it up, earning an indignant mewl (which he supposes is from disturbing the thing's nap). 

"I want this one," he says to Jay when there's a break in her conversation, and she smiles, nodding. 

"Alright." They go through the process of signing the papers, and while Jay pays for the kitten itself, Louis picks out a pretty pink collar with a quiet pink bell that makes a tinkling noise when it moves. He also uses the machine beside the collars to engrave his cell and home number on the tag that will go on her collar, along with her name, which he pauses for a moment to think about. He decides on Toulouse after a minute of standing there with the kitten tucked comfortably in his arm, and after the tag has been engraved, the store clerk helps put both the collar and tag on. They go back home after that.

It's not until Louis has put Toulouse's little bed beside his own bed and she's just crawled inside of the thing, that Daisy and Phoebe come barging in, wanting to see 'Louis's new cat'. Louis huffs and shakes his head, because she's his kitten, and she's just fallen back asleep, and no means no. He has to scream it over their own screams about him being selfish and annoying, and they eventually leave, dejected, but Louis stops them, sighing. "You can come see her later tonight. But not right now." They brighten up considerably after that, and Louis smiles, just because they are.

 

* * *

 

 

Harry spends his weekend not thinking about the unanswered text he sent on Friday night. He doesn't think about it when he's mowing the front lawn, or when he's washing his Impala and making sure the tires are still in tip-top shape. He doesn't think about it when he's washing his hair in the shower, or when he's making dinner for himself and his parents are out on a date night. He may think about it when Liam leaves after a five hour marathon of video games, and Harry's about ready to collapse. He remembers, at the last moment, that he really /does/ have to read three chapters of Beowulf, and he does know what pages they are, although what would it have hurt to ask Louis? He'll have to remember to ask him to sit with them at lunch on Monday. So, after he's done he's reading and he's put all his things in his backpack, he texts Louis again.

**Harry: sit with us tomrrow? zayn and niall are going to again**

And that text is also left without a reply. But Harry doesn't sweat it, since the first text has that distinct  **Read** sign underneath it, and the one he just sent is still at  **Delivered**. 

 

He wakes up the next morning and stretches, before getting up out of the bed and yawning, pushing a few pieces of his hair back from his forehead. He needs to make himself a hair appointment soon. He should probably write that down on a note somewhere. He doesn't. It takes him half an hour to get ready for school and he still has to adjust his headband, but he leaves it slightly askew and gets into his car, making it to school just at the bell. "Fuck," he mutters, since, apparently, his luck isn't on a great streak this morning, and he's a minute late to his AP Brit Lit.

"Ah, Styles, nice of you to join us," Mr. Beall greets Harry and Harry smiles at him.

"Sorry, Mr. B. Overslept a bit," he responds, and sits down in his desk in the front row.

 

Harry's classes go fast enough for a Monday, and he's actually finding himself looking forward to lunch. For some odd reason. When he sits at the table with a burger and fries, Zayn's already there with Liam. "Hey, is Louis okay?" Harry finds himself asking, and when Zayn looks up at him, he smiles brightly.

"Dunno. He was pretty angry with me for giving you his number," he responds, and Harry frowns, because he didn't mean for that to happen. 

"Oh. I'm sorry."

Zayn shrugs, "He's gonna apologize. He's not big on people giving his number out, and I probably should have asked him before I did, so." It's silent for a few moments until there's another tray beside Zayn's and Niall appears, grinning and everything. 

"Louis' happy today," he announces and pops a french fry into his mouth, and Zayn looks over at Liam before back at Niall. Niall sighs, "Don't ask me why. All I know is that he told me to apologize to you for his text and that he knows it was a dick move, and he didn't mean it."

Harry watches as Zayn lets out what seems to be a relieved sigh, and he peers around the cafeteria, seeing no sign of Louis, "Is he going to sit with us today?" When Niall shakes his head, he asks another question, "Where does he sit?" Both of the boys go quiet for a moment, sharing a pointed look before groaning.

"Outside. On the benches near the trees," is the answer Harry gets, and when he gets up with his tray, Liam does too.

"We could all go sit with him," Liam offers, and Zayn smiles, also standing up as well. It doesn't take the four long to spot Louis where he is nibbling on a granny-smith apple, and Harry can see his nose crinkle up and his lips part when he sits down beside his feet, which are propped up. Zayn and Liam end up on the other bench, and Niall's content with the ground.

Harry takes a small breath before speaking up, since no one's said anything, just gone back to eating, "You didn't reply to my text the other night."

"I didn't believe I should respond to someone who doesn't even tell me who they are when they're asking me to sit with them," Louis mumbles, although he looks up at Harry and blinks a few times. He really is quite cute, Niall was right about that when they talked earlier, and he doesn't seem to want to make fun of him for the drink-on-the-boy incident.

"I'm sorry. I really didn't think about that," Harry breathes out, and Louis blinks again, because Harry just apologized to him and he can't say anything snarky without sounding like an asshat, so. He shrugs.

"S'okay. I'm not a big fan of texting anyways." Louis figures if he accepts the apology, Harry'll stop talking, but he's wrong. Despite anything he has against Harry, he /can/ hold a conversation well, and he listens as Louis talks about his new kitten and his sisters and the cupcakes that he made. While Harry's talking, Louis listens too, but he looks at the crooked headband in Harry's hair and keeps himself from smiling, because it's such a different style than Zayn or Niall, and how Greg used to dress, and they're all he's ever really been around.

"Will you bring me a cupcake?" Harry asks, tipping his head to the side with a smile, and Louis startles a bit- not having expected that question, and having been in the middle of telling himself (mentally) that  _he was not checking Harry Styles out_ and that  _he can't date, he won't let himself_.  _  
_

"I suppose I could. If they're not all gone." Louis smiles slightly himself, and Harry's own smile grows a little bigger. "No promises though," he adds. And when the lunch bell rings, he thinks that Harry and Liam aren't all too bad. Even if Liam and Zayn are a little absorbed in one another, and Niall just keeps interjecting at random times, he figures that it wouldn't be too terrible to make two new friends. It is his senior year, after all.


End file.
